From civil society to policy research: the case of the Soros Network and its Roma policies

This paper explores the process of policy-making in the transition countries of Central and Eastern Europe by examining the role of the Soros Network in relation to the protection of Roma rights. The paper argues that in the transition economies, many policy fields are still considerably undeveloped and in need of conceptually sound, efficient and consistent public policies. These areas include health care, education, reform of the judiciary and law enforcement mechanisms, policies relating to vulnerable groups of the population, including different national or ethnic minorities, woman, and mentally disabled. However the experience, expertise for research, definition, implementation, and monitoring of appropriate policies are often not available to the policy-makers. In these sensitive sectors the activity of state actors has come to be complemented by other actors, most notably the international community and the non-governmental sector.

The Soros Network is identified as one of the most important non-governmental actors in the countries of the region. It takes an active involvement the policy process particularly in priority areas of public health, education, and minority protection. This involves the following activities:

• Professional capacity development for civil servants, the judiciary, and service providers in different policy areas.
  
• Institution-building both for governmental units responsible for policy analysis and non-governmental groups engaged in research and advocacy.
  
• Support for international NGOs that could meaningfully participate in the policy process.
  
• Commissioning, generatating and undertaking policy research.
  
• Sponsoring social research with policy implication through grants and fellowship schemes.

The paper draws the following conclusions:

• On sub-national level, states are not the only actors participating in the formation and implementation of policies. Cooperation among different stakeholders is often hindered by different drawbacks and weaknesses yet good practices could be explored and even generated.
  
• Financing research is not enough - connecting the recipients of policy research grants to local and regional think tanks, transnational NGOs and organisation is another tool for improving the grantees' capacities to influence the policy debates.
  
• State capacities in the respective policy fields need to be upgraded both in terms of professional and financial resources.
  
• The policy-making process is complicated; better understanding of its complexities could help to design research so that it makes a difference with respect to the policy process and to the actors of the process.
  
• The Soros Network has developed a large and diversified body of knowledge from its first-hand contact, support, and monitoring of various projects pursued by its units and grantees but the Network is far from having a well developed framework and practice for processing and sharing all these knowledge within the Network and among major partners.

(From Eldis)